School Rules Are Optional

by Alison Hart

  I would like to thank Writers Victoria, Amanda Martin, Gracie Harber, Emma Williamson, Anna McFarlane and Nicola Santilli for their help with writing this book.

  Thank you to Liz Anelli for the wonderful illustrations, and Mika Tabata for the great design.

  Thank you Oliver Phommavanh, Nat Amoore and Kate and Jol Temple for the generous endorsements.

  And thank you to Ray Jones for your unwavering faith in me, and my family, for your continued love and support.

  Alison Hart lives at the foothills of the Dandenong Ranges with her daughter and lots of animals, wild and domestic. The house block is so steep, you have to go down two sets of steps to get to the front door. It’s nice and quiet for writing, but also a bit distracting because the view is really good. In her spare time, Alison likes reading, watching old movies, and opening and closing the door for the cat. Besides writing, Alison works in community aged care. School Rules Are Optional is her first novel.

  Turn the page for a sneak peek of Book Two and the next adventure for Jesse and his friends …

  Jun and a couple of other kids are staring at something on Minha’s mobile phone. What could be so interesting that Minha has her phone out now? Mrs Leeman will be here in about two minutes’ time.

  ‘Have a look at this,’ Jun says when he sees me. ‘Fish.’ The picture on the phone is blurry, but I can see three little goldfish crowded around some miniature plastic trees stuck in coloured gravel. Ordinary goldfish. They’re not interesting at all. I’m about to look away when one of them moves.

  ‘It’s a video?’

  ‘Yeah, look,’ Jun says again.

  The camera follows the goldfish along the tank past more trees, treasure chests and a sunken hotel. There’s more furniture in there than we have in our whole house. Right at the other end, in front of a fake castle, there’s another fish about five times as big as the other ones. He’s massive. He’s got big boggly eyes the size of real peas stuck on each side of his head.

  The other fish reach the castle, then turn around and start swimming back again. The boggly-eyed one doesn’t need to swim around because he can see in every direction at the same time without moving. Mrs Leeman can do that with normal eyes, which is why Minha should put her phone away. Otherwise it will be the first confiscated item this term.

  The second bell goes but there’s no sign of Alex.

  It’s weird because he’s never late.

  Mrs Leeman arrives at 9.01 am and we shuffle over a bit to let her through. She takes out a big bunch of keys and unlocks our classroom as if on the other side of the door it’s the land of chocolate and not the sand bunker of boredom. For a minute I think we’re in the wrong room because everything looks different. All the old pictures on the walls have been replaced with maps and graphs about population density and stuff. None of us know what to do because the desks have been moved around as well. Now they’re arranged in two big blocks facing the front with an aisle down the middle; kind of like a wedding set up for the oldest, crankiest bride imaginable. We’re told to find the desk with our name on it. Mine is in the middle, on the aisle.

  I feel like I’m on a plane.

  Mrs Leeman must have come in during the holidays and reorganised everything herself. She probably comes to school every day and views the days when we are there as well as an inconvenience.

  Class begins as usual without any discussion about anything. A confusing diagram of overlapping triangles appears on the interactive whiteboard. As we get into a boring lesson about the triangles, I have a quick look around the room. There’s two empty desks: one right up the front, and another one up the back. Jun and Braden are sitting as far from me as possible while still being in the room. In fact, everyone has been separated from their friends. Mrs Leeman must have some kind of social network informant. No one is sitting anywhere near close enough to pass anything to or talk with their friends. She would be really good at those games where you have to keep some things away from other things so they don’t get eaten or die.

  About ten minutes into the lesson, Ian knocks on the square bit of window in the door. Everyone jumps because our classroom is so quiet, you’re scared to unzip your pencil case. He opens the door a little bit and sticks his head around.

  ‘Hey, guys! Hi, Mrs Leeman! Sorry to interrupt. I was wondering if I could borrow Jesse for a tick?’

  Mrs Leeman says I can go as long as I’m not away from class for too long. How do I know how long I’m going to be? I don’t even know why I’m going. I don’t even know where I’m going. I can feel everyone looking at me as I walk up the aisle towards the designated exit. I follow Ian up to the administration building. He marches straight up to Mr Wilson’s office and knocks on the door.

  ‘I thought Alex might like a bit of moral support,’ he says, mysteriously.

  I’m only expecting to see Mr Wilson and maybe Alex, but the vice-principal’s office is full of people. Alex is there and so are his parents. I notice Mr Bauer, Alex’s dad, is wearing his special occasion tie. It’s yellow with bobbly gold thread running through it. There’s also a kid about our age in casual clothes and a bearded guy with a green hairy jumper. And Ian. Everyone stops talking and stares at me.

  Green hairy jumper guy says, ‘Jesse! Jesse? Tell me! Have you and Alex been friends for long?’

  He must be one of those people who asks you a question when they already know the answer. Maybe it’s a trick question. I’m just thinking about how to answer it when he asks, ‘So! Do you think Alex could be bored in Mrs Leeman’s class?’

  Now I know it’s a trick. If I was on TV I would ask for a lawyer.

  I have no idea what’s going on and it’s not any clearer when Ian leans forwards and says, ‘Don’t stress, Jesse. Alex will put you in the picture. We’re just tossing around some ideas today.’

  Mr Wilson announces to the room in general, ‘Ian is our Wellbeing Officer.’

  Ian’s a Wellbeing Officer now? That means he only lasted one term as a teacher.

  I didn’t think he was that bad.

  On the way back to class, Alex tells me what the meeting was all about.

  ‘Mum and Dad want me to change schools,’ he says. ‘Maybe. To St Bennett’s College.’

  St Bennett’s College sounds like a boarding school from two hundred years ago. Alex says it’s only for really smart kids so there’s no chance I’ll get to go with him. He has to go every Wednesday for the whole term to see if he likes it better than here. The guy with the hairy green jumper in Mr Wilson’s office is the principal! He looks like some guy who just wandered in from taking his dog for a walk.

  I ask Alex if he’s ever noticed that Ian speaks like a phrase-a-day calendar.

  I say, ‘Put you in the picture … tossing around ideas.’

  Alex starts laughing.

  ‘I have to see Ian every week,’ he says. ‘We’re going to talk it over.’

  ‘I hope he gets through to you,’ I say and we both crack up.

  We have to calm down and stop laughing before going into class.

  I don’t say anything to Alex but I secretly wish that St Bennett’s has made a mistake and there’s no vacancy for him.

  I just assumed we would go to the same school next year.

  I never thought he would leave early or go to a different school.

  What am I going to do without my best friend?

  READ THE REST OF BOOK TWO IN 2021